Reach for the Sky
by Hirono
Summary: Ichigo is Karakura Town's famous prodigal pilot, his passion and dedication unrivalled. However, no one really knows his reason for becoming a pilot in the first place...AU/somewhat IchiRuki/Ichihime hinted
1. Chapter 1

A/N: I don't know what inspired this story, maybe the Ichigo flying scene in the new opening? xD

Air hostess and flight attendant are used interchangeably here.

I've worked really hard on this story (at least harder than the other fics I did? xD) so I hope you guys will enjoy!

Summary: Ichigo is Karakura Town's famous prodigal pilot, his passion and dedication unrivalled. However, no one really knows his reason for becoming a pilot in the first place...AU/somewhat IchiRuki/Ichihime hinted

Genre: Drama

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Bleach

* * *

Chapter 1

* * *

"I can't believe it! I'm finally going on an airplane!"

A young child with vibrant orange hair and brown eyes, no older than 9 years old, holds his mother's hand, jumping excitedly. The child's mother, Masaki, is a stunningly beautiful woman. As the mother and son stroll across the corridor leading toward the gate, heads turn to look at the woman with light brown, slightly curly hair tied in a loose pony tail, a pointed chin and kind brown eyes. Masaki, however, only has eyes for her son. She smiles at his enthusiasm. "I know, isn't this great? It's our first overseas trip together! But, Ichigo, don't ever leave my sight okay?"

"I won't, oka-chan!" Ichigo says passionately. He silently adds, _I made a promise to myself to protect you, oka-chan, so I will be by your side forever._

Masaki and Ichigo are sitting in the waiting area, waiting to enter the airplane. With nothing else to do, the young Ichigo pulls out a small model airplane of a Boeing 737-800. He holds tight onto his model airplane, imagining that the airplane is flying as he makes engine sounds, all the while smiling ever so cheerfully. Masaki chuckles that her son seems more excited about the flight than the trip itself.

A bell sounds. Ichigo looks up from his model airplane as a cool female voice announces, "Flight 8310 is ready to board. Passengers may line up to board the plane. Please let those with disabilities and young children board first."

"Ichigo, let's go." Masaki says as Ichigo grabs his bag and follows her. After they gave their tickets to the flight attendant, they walk down the tunnel-like ramp. A blast of warm summer air greets them as they approach to the entrance of the airplane. Masaki can feel Ichigo's excitement rising.

"Welcome aboard," The air hostess stationed at the entrance says warmly. Masaki nods while Ichigo's smile widens. They make their way through the narrow walkway and find their seats. Masaki puts their hand luggage into the top compartment.

"Ichigo, why don't you take the window seat? You can see what's outside of the airplane while we're traveling."

Ichigo looks thrilled, but says carefully, "Don't you want to look outside as well, oka-chan?"

"Don't worry about it; oka-chan can see it from here."

"Yay!" Ichigo cheers and hops onto his seat. He fastens his seat belt (as all children do automatically when they see them). While waiting for the plane to take off, Ichigo fingers the various brochures, safety instruction booklet, and a paper bag. He takes the thickest book of them and realizes the book contains the plane's information. He unfolds the table and is reading the first few pages -

"Hello there, little boy. Please put the table back up as we're about to take off." An air hostess says politely.

"Oh, okay. I'm so sorry." Ichigo's face reddens, embarrassed.

The air hostess smiles, "That's quite alright. You can unfold the table after the seat belt light is turned off. Thank you." She walks away. Ichigo hates reading books without a flat surface to support it, so he turns to watch through the window instead. He watches as the passenger's luggage are loaded one by one into the plane. Beside their plane is another, smaller aircraft. Ichigo is examining it when the plane finally moves.

Before take-off, the small screen in front of the passengers airs a short safety film, to which Ichigo paid his full attention. Once the film ends, Ichigo glances out of the window and sees the plane slowly approaches the runway. The engine gives a thunderous roar and the plane accelerates. Ichigo gazes at the descending land as the plane flies higher. The Karakura town grows smaller and smaller until even the largest building in town is no greater than a speck. All Ichigo can see are the blue skies and the deep blue ocean, with many clouds flying by. His ears are blocked uncomfortably from the change in air pressure, but thankfully Masaki taught him several ways to counter the effects – he yawns several times until the pressure in his ears lifts.

Once the bell sounds, signalling that it is safe to remove seat belts, Ichigo immediately unfolds the table and begins reading in earnest. Masaki reads along with him. Ichigo spends particularly long time on the pages where they display the different models of airplanes the airline company owns.

"See this one…Boeing 733? That's the one we're riding on right now! And there's this one…" Ichigo rambles on and on. Masaki merely smiles at Ichigo's cuteness.

* * *

The skies gradually darken. Before long, one can see nothing out of the window. Ichigo stretches his arms and closes the blind.

Masaki asks, "Hmm? Why did you close the blind?"

"I can't see anything during the night…and it's kind of depressing."

Masaki smiles, "Really? But you can see the beautiful moon and shimmering stars during the night!" Ichigo looks unconvinced, so Masaki adds, "The day is too bright for sleeping anyway. Don't you think so?"

"I suppose…" Ichigo yawns. Masaki notices and says, "Why don't you sleep for a bit? We won't be there for a long while."

"No! This is my first time on an airplane! I can't fall asl-" Ichigo involuntarily yawns again, a hint of blush rising up his cheek.

"Now, now, no need to be so stubborn. Besides, you just oulled down the shade - there's nothing to see outside. Sleep now so you'll feel more energized for the trip later."

"Okay, oka-chan." Ichigo rolls over slightly to his side. Masaki chuckles quietly. She takes one of the blankets provided and pulls it over Ichigo, who is already fully asleep.

* * *

At long last, Masaki and Ichigo arrive at New York. As it is still pretty late in New York, they check into their hotel and go straight to bed. Both want to be energetic and not tired down by jetlag.

They wake up to the sound of the alarm clock. Dark clouds cover the skies as they exit their hotel that day. "It looks like it's going to rain," Masaki frowns, "I thought the weather report said that it was going to be sunny these few days. Ah well, let's go and buy a small umbrella while we walk around downtown."

"Sure," replies Ichigo.

They run into a store to avoid the rain. After they bought their umbrellas, they walk out onto the street to look around Manhattan. It is a dreary day, with the relentless rain pouring down, such that it is not the best day for sight-seeing. Yet it does not dampen Ichigo's spirit – as he grips Masaki's hand tightly, he eyes went wild at the sight of so many different things from his hometown. Although he cannot read the signs as they are in a different language, he only feels more excited in the foreign environment. After walking past several fast-food restaurants, clothes shops and CDs shops, Ichigo stops to look at the window display of comic shop, something he can understand without knowing English very fluently.

Suddenly, there is a loud, screeching noise on the wet pavement to the side of Ichigo. Ichigo turns just in time to see a silver car with a panicked driver skids out of control and toward him. He only has a moment to fear before Masaki shouts, "Ichigo!" and pushes Ichigo away. Ichigo falls unconscious as his head hits the ground.

* * *

When Ichigo comes to, he feels warm. Wet. Sticky. He opens his eyes.

A confusion of noises greets him. People are standing around him. Through his muffled and perplexed mind, he realizes he is lying on the street with a wrecked, smoking car beside him. He does not understand what is going on. "Oka-chan…what…?" He turns his head toward the head of the car. He freezes.

Masaki lies unmoving next to him.

The rain falls.

* * *

A/N: So there you have it! Even though it's AU I try to keep some key points of the original manga in my fic. I'm sorry that Masaki had to die again =(

Thanks for reading! R&R please?

Next chapter will be out on June 10th!


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: A midnight release! (at least in my region) ^^! This chapter is where Rukia comes in :)

A random suggestion: try listening to Glow - the duet, especially the piano version, while reading this ;) I listened to it while writing that particular scene...

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Bleach...it all belongs to Tite Kubo...etc.

* * *

Chapter 2

* * *

The funeral is held in New York, as the Kurosakis cannot transport the body back to Karakura Town. Isshin, Ichigo's father, and Karin and Yuzu, Ichigo's two younger twin sisters, all fly to New York as soon as possible.

It is a short and small funeral, as not all relatives could attend from overseas. Those who come are the ones who have deep ties to Masaki and who had immigrated to North America previously.

On the day the funeral is held, Ichigo, Karin, Yuzu, and Isshin all wait as Masaki's body is cremated. The black smoke trails toward the sky, as though liberating Masaki's soul from her body. The ashes left behind are the only remnants of Masaki's existence in the living world.

* * *

Isshin books a flight back with Karin and Yuzu. Since the flight is booked differently from Masaki and Ichigo's original vacation plans, Ichigo will have to fly back to Karakura Town alone.

The tiny Ichigo sits alone next to the window, a pillow sitting on his lap. No one sits beside him, as the seat was originally Masaki's. He stared at the dark cloudy sky with his blood-shot eyes as he murmurs, "That's why I told her that the night is depressing…"

An air hostess suddenly appears next to him and says, "Hello there. Is everything alright? My name is Rukia, nice to meet you." Ichigo looks up. The flight attendant is a petite young woman with black, short hair. A stand of hair lies between her amethyst-coloured, round eyes, something different from other flight attendants, who have neatly tied hair.

"Ni-nice to meet you, too, I'm…" Tears wells up in Ichigo's eyes again, but he stubbornly blinks them away, "I'm alright."

"See this tag that you're wearing? It means that onee-san is going help you if you have any troubles during the flight."

"My father gave me this tag before he left…"

Ichigo gulps slightly at the memory of his mother on the plane with him, and remains silent. Rukia notices that the boy looks very pale, as though he has cried for a very long time. Rukia very gently asks, "If you don't mind, would you like to tell nee-san what's wrong? Maybe I can help."

Ichigo looks into at the amethyst orbs and sees nothing but concern. Ichigo lowers his head and says, "I…" Ichigo stops; the memory of Masaki is too painful. Rukia notes his hesitation and says instead, "It's okay if you don't tell me, if you feel uncomfortable talking about it. Just remember that if you need me, I'll be right here."

Ichigo feels slightly better after that.

Rukia brings some snacks, crayons and coloring pages to Ichigo. Ichigo nibbles on some of the nuts but does not touch the crayons. Rukia sits beside Ichigo. "You don't like to draw, Ichigo-kun?"

"…I like it okay. It's just that…I don't really feel like coloring stuff right now."

"Well, I'll tell you a bit of myself then. I may not look it, but I'm actually the youngest flight attendant on the plane. Can you guess how old nee-san is?"

"Um…19?"

"Darn, I wish you'd said I'm younger," Rukia fakes an annoyed expression, "I'm 17 years old. This is only the second time I'm working on the plane – the return flight."

"Really?" Ichigo questions.

"It's true." Rukia takes the crayons and draws absent-mindedly on the paper. Ichigo peers at the paper and sees something resembling a rabbit head on top of an airplane. Although Ichigo is no artist, he cannot help but to think that Rukia's drawings…let's just say, have room for improvement, though Ichigo is in no mood to tell her so. Instead, Ichigo hesitates, then asks shyly, "How do you like working on the plane?"

"I like this job so far. I mean, I get to travel to different places in the world without going broke! Well, I mostly just stay in the airport, but when I get old I can say that I've traveled around the world," Rukia says enthusiastically, "Though I don't really get to stay at home that much," Rukia added as an afterthought.

_Home,_ Ichigo thinks, _what will it be like without oka-chan?_ Fighting back tears again, Ichigo glances outside of the window. He hugged his pillow tightly as he says slowly, "…My mother…she was hit by a car and died while we were in New York."

Rukia is shocked, and immediately feels pity for the young child who is barely nine years old. The tears that Ichigo had held back before rolls down his cheek freely, "It was all my fault. If I didn't freeze there…if I pushed oka-chan away instead…"

"Then your oka-chan would have been really sad, Ichigo," Rukia interrupts gently, "What happened back there was an accident.

"Your mom was a person who didn't mind sacrificing her life to save her son…for that, I'm sure that she wouldn't want to see her son crying either."

Ichigo sniffles and seems to calm down slightly. Rukia hands him a tissue and strokes Ichigo's conspicuous orange hair. Ichigo remains silent for a while. Then, he says quietly, "I hope she's happy on the other side."

* * *

After Ichigo is calm enough, Rukia leaves for awhile to take care of other passengers. Time and time again Rukia has to attend to other people, but Rukia always returns to Ichigo to make sure he is alright.

Though full of grief, Ichigo begins to feel a little bit better by talking to Rukia. Somehow, Rukia puts him at ease, calms the storm that was brewing inside his head. He looks outside to the night and sees a full moon glowing softly. "Maybe the night isn't so bad after all," Ichigo mutters, "Oka-chan."

When Rukia returns this time, she finds the little Ichigo huddled to sleep. She is glad to see that the puffy-eyed child is feeling better, if only slightly. She grabs a blanket that Ichigo had tucked into the seat pocket and pulls it over him gently. Ichigo shuffles slightly but did not wake up. Rukia leans over, turnes off the light, and pulls down the blind beside Ichigo.

* * *

The plane finally reaches the air of Japan; the long flight coming to an end. Rukia is about to return to the flight attendants' seats when she feels a tug at her uniform. Rukia turns around to see a small hand clutching the edge of her shirt.

"Is it…okay if you stay with me during the landing?" Ichigo asks timidly.

Rukia peers toward her fellow hostesses. Surely they would understand the situation.

"Of course."

Ichigo smiles slightly, "Thank you so much!"

Rukia is happy to see that the child was finally smiling.

The plane lands on Karakura Town's airport safely. Rukia helps Ichigo to get his luggage from the top compartment. Then, walking out together, Rukia accompanies Ichigo to the exit. Ichigo can see his father and sisters waiting for him behind the doors. Ichigo turns toward Rukia. "Thank you for everything," Ichigo says hesitantly, "Will I ever see you again?"

"Probably not, Ichigo-kun. But I will always remember you."

"Me too."

Rukia waves as Ichigo runs towards his dad, smiling sadly.

While taking the taxi back home, Ichigo thinks that, in spite of all that has happened, he still loved being on a plane. He is glad that Rukia was there with him. Though he is young, he understands that they are very unlikely to see each other again. Nevertheless, he vows that one day he will find Rukia up in the skies again.

* * *

A/N: Thanks a ton for reading, hope you guys enjoyed! And please review!

The third (and last) chapter will be out on June 12th!


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Last chapter! ^-^ Enjoy~

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Bleach

* * *

Chapter 3

* * *

Ichigo is determined to get into aviation. When he told his father Isshin, his father worried that Ichigo might be burdened with what had happened to Masaki the first time he was on a flight (not to mention the expensive tuition fees). However, Isshin sees the burning passion in Ichigo's eyes, and so says, "Do what it is that your heart tells you." Ichigo nearly cries with joy. Isshin adds, "When you fail and give up, your father would be right here."

Ichigo immediately kicks Isshin in the head and runs toward his room.

Isshin lies on the ground, mumbling, "Masaki, your son is as violent to his father as always…"

Ichigo works hard for the next few years to get the grades he needs to get into the program in university - as Ichigo aims to become a captain, he needs a college degree. He becomes fluent in English while he is attending high school. He excels so much at school that he enrolls in university one year early.

To Ichigo, the aviation program is almost as a dream – he enjoys every last bit of it. Ichigo flies whenever he is free from class. He even soaks up the boring theoretical and technical lectures. He is really glad that he chose a career that he would forever like.

In the back of Ichigo's mind, he always wondered whether he would meet Rukia again. Though the hope diminishes as the years pass, he never gives up.

Eventually, Ichigo passes all exams with ease. Ichigo obtains the Commercial Pilot License and university diploma at the age of 21.

Through his perseverance and determination, Ichigo becomes one of the youngest commercial pilots ever in Japan.

* * *

He is hired by the Japanese Airlines almost immediately after his graduation. After all these years of hard work, Ichigo finally steps into his very first job. He meets up with the captain of the flight. The captain is a kind-looking man, about the age of 50 (Ichigo could never tell). He has soft wrinkles lining his eyes and cheeks. Despite his age, his gray eyes still twinkles. His greying short hair is neatly gelled. Ichigo shakes hands with the captain, glad to be working with such an experienced pilot. Ichigo feels more and more excited about this flight (even though it is a midnight, local flight) as they step into the plane. Somehow, he has a feeling that something good is going to happen.

They are chatting amiably, preparing for the flight, when the cabin door suddenly opens, "Good evening, Captain. Could you turn on the passenger's screens? Some of the passengers are complaining," a distant, but somewhat familiar voice says. Ichigo's heart skips a few beats before turning around. A short, black-haired woman with amethyst eyes is standing at the entrance.

_No way, _thinks Ichigo, _could this be…Rukia? _

She looks thinner, paler and a lot shorter than he remembers, but the kindness that shines in her amethyst eyes is the same.

Rukia peers at the new pilot, whose shocking orange hair hides underneath his hat. His heart-shaped face and vibrant brown eyes remind her of something, but she cannot remember quite clearly. She stares into his eyes and frowns slightly.

"If you don't mind me saying, you look strangely familiar…" Rukia says slowly. She looks at the name tag on the pilot's chest that said, "Kurosaki Ichigo," Her memories come back piece by piece.

"Yo." Ichigo grins broadly at Rukia's shocked expression. "We haven't seen each other for a long time. It's nice to see you here. Do you still remember me?"

"I…Ichigo-kun?" says Rukia incredulously, "You're THE Kurosaki Ichigo? The little kid…Ichigo…from my second-ever flight?"

Ichigo frowns, "It wasn't _that_ long ago, and I'm clearly not a kid now."

"No way…" Rukia is still stunned, "I never thought that you would become a pilot…and so young too."

"I would've thought you've noticed it was me in the papers…"

Rukia raises her eyebrows. The helpless child she used to know seems to have grown – more obnoxious that is.

"Well excuse me if I don't remember you from reading the newspaper, _Strawberry_. The name is so girly that I assumed it was a girl, and that's why they made such a big fuss over it."

"What did you say, midget?" This was definitely not turning out the way Ichigo thought it was.

"Who are you calling midget?"

The captain looks on, unsure what to do with these two.

"Well if you read on, maybe you would've noticed that they used a MALE pronoun. 'He' not 'she'," Ichigo says indignantly. He adds in an undertone, "So much for working hard so that _someone_ would notice that I wanted to see her again."

Rukia hears his mumble and blushes. "I only read the headlines because I'm so busy, unlike _someone_ who turned narcissistic. Your head is so blown up that you probably can't even see what's right in front of your nose, let alone flying this plane. I hope we're all going to survive this flight." Rukia says as she storms out of the cabin. Ichigo rolls his eyes.

After Rukia left for a while, the captain glances at Ichigo sideways to make sure he is calm enough to fly. He is surprised to see Ichigo grinning. The captain sighs lightly, thinking, "_Kids these days."_

* * *

The plane lands safely. When Ichigo leaves the plane, he immediately catches up with Rukia. Rukia turns toward him, "That was a good flight," says Rukia sincerely, a sudden change in attitude.

Both of them walk out of the gate. They decide to get a cup of coffee together, so they head towards the Coffee Bureau. Ichigo pays for both his and Rukia's latte. They look around for seats and decide to sit at the huge, leathery, maroon coloured sofas right next to an electrical fireplace. Some soft jazz music is playing in the background. Ichigo hands Rukia her latte, his hand brushing hers for a moment, surprised at how cold her hand is. "Thank you," said Rukia. She blows on her latte gently to cool it down.

They talk about a lot of things – the news, their lives, and the weather. They find talking to each other is easy. Ichigo is particularly happy to be able to talk to Rukia again.

"I guess I get to see you more often from now on, then." Ichigo grins.

Rukia looks suddenly very uncomfortable for a moment. She lowers her head slightly, avoiding his gaze as she says slowly, "Actually, Ichigo…I don't know how to say this."

A sudden, forceful dread of what Rukia is about to say filled Ichigo. Somehow, he feels that someone important to him was, once again, leaving him.

"This…was my last flight."

Ichigo can only stare. Rukia gathered her courage.

"This was my last flight, because…I have leukemia." Shock ripples Ichigo. How could he have not noticed?

Rukia took a deep breath and continued, "My doctor says that I can't continue to work like this. There aren't any suitable donors, especially since my blood type is so rare. Although the disease hasn't taken a heavy toll on me yet, I…don't have much longer to live.

"Despite that, my boyfriend wants to marry me," Rukia has tears in her eyes, "I'm so happy that he is willing to marry a dying person, and at the same time I feel so guilty for causing him so much pain. But he insisted…" Rukia finally looks up, staring into Ichigo, searching for something, "I hope you'll forgive me for leaving so soon."

Silence ensues. Ichigo stares at Rukia for a moment. Ichigo has to blink several times before giving Rukia a pained smile

"Of course I'll forgive you," says Ichigo gently, "There's nothing else you could do. You're making this decision so that you'll stay with your one important person forever, and there's nothing wrong with that." Ichigo's hands tenses for a moment, but then relax. He smiles and continues, "But I won't forgive you if we don't keep in touch and you get better."

Rukia looks half relieved, half regretful. She silently thinks that the child had certainly grown as she smiles at Ichigo, "Of course we'll keep in touch. And I'll definitely get better."

* * *

A year has passed since his reunion with Rukia. Rukia passed away ten months after their reunion, but not before marrying her fiancé months before that. Ichigo was happy that she was able to spend her last moments in life happily, something that not everyone is able to do. Ichigo thinks how his mother passed away protecting her son. Even though Ichigo still feels slightly guilty, Ichigo knows he would hate to see his mother grieving. It was, as Rukia said, inevitable, and so he let go. It was almost the same with letting Rukia go.

Ichigo snaps back to his present surroundings from his wandering thoughts. He and another pilot are sitting in the flight deck, getting ready for a long, over-sea flight. It is still quite early, as the sun has only begun to rise; the sky is dark blue and dotted with some crisp clouds. While the passengers and luggage board onto the plane, Ichigo makes sure everything is in order. Suddenly, the cabin's door opens and an energetic voice boomed,

"Good morning! My name is Inoue Orihime! I'm a new air hostess and this is my first flight. I thought it would be nice to introduce myself to the captain and pilot of the flight. Nice to meet you!"

Ichigo turns around. The girl is very young, with auburn long hair (tied back as the company strictly directs. Sometimes Ichigo wonders how Rukia got away with her conspicuous bang). Her gray round eyes sparkles with enthusiasm and anticipation. Ichigo glances at the lively girl, some memories of Rukia resurfacing. The sun has risen almost fully now, the brilliant sunlight brightening up the cabin. He smiles and said to Orihime, "Welcome aboard."

* * *

Fin

* * *

A/N: Sorry about no warnings for character death, but it would have been…well…ruined since I covered so little characters.

Anyways, hope you guys enjoyed! Thanks a ton for reading! R&R please?

And here's some little omake:

* * *

Omake:

Rukia takes a sip from her latte, savoring the rich flavor. They are talking about Rukia's career when Ichigo abruptly asks, "By the way, are your drawings still as bad as they were before?"

A vein pops on her forehead, Rukia resists the urge to splash her latte over him. Instead, she put on her best acting skills and says, deceptively and sweetly, "Why, Ichigo-san, of course I've improved throughout the years."

"Really..." Ichigo sounds unconvinced.

Rukia continues to smile, "Want me to show you?"

"Nah, I'm fine," Ichigo stood up, "I'm going to the washroom for a bit. Can you watch over my stuff?"

Rukia's eyes flashes for a moment. "No problem at all, Ichigo-san~"

Ichigo glances somewhat uncomfortably behind him as he heads to the washroom.

When Ichigo comes back, he is surprised to see that all his belongings are still intact. _Huh_, Ichigo thinks, _I guess she's less sensitive about her drawings than I thought._

He never notices the bunny that is drawn onto the insides of his hat until much, much later._  
_


End file.
